The advancement of the computer industry has impacted both industry and society immensely. Today, the computer industry is a multi-billion dollar business machine, with advancements in speed, technology, size, and cost everyday. One area of advancement is in storage units and capacity for media and multimedia information.
The early years in the computer industry found magnetic tapes as a means for storing information. Advancements in technology lead to the 5¼-inch floppy disc, which soon lead to the 3½-inch floppies. Eventually, optical technology led to the compact disc and digital video disc, or digital versatile disc. Information of various types, whether audio, video, data, or multimedia, can be stored in these various storage devices.
Today, two of the primary means of information storage are the compact disc (CD) and the digital video disc (DVD). These two forms of information storage have become a staple in both the computer and music/entertainment industries. The reasons are clear. The data storage capacity of a CD and DVD is much larger than compared to other technologies. Today, much of the software that is sold is only available on CD, DVD, or other similar media forms. Alternative media forms such as the floppy disk, videocassette recorder tapes and audiocassettes are being phased out by many manufactures or listed as an additional feature to the standard model.
The actual operating surface of CDs, DVDs and other similar forms of information storage is susceptible to damage from contact with oil from a fingerprint, dust particles, and scratches to its surface to name a few. One type of protective device is the jewel case design that opens like a book. FIG. 1A is an example of an existing jewel case design 101. The edge of the center hole of a CD or DVD is secured to the jewel case by plastic molded clamp arms 105. However, these protective devices are bulky and rigid. Another type of protective device is the conventional polypropylene and paper sleeve. FIG. 1B is an example of a polypropylene sleeve 120. Conventional polypropylene and paper sleeves are flexible materials. However, in many such designs, a disc 125 inserted into the sleeve 120 can slip within and/or fall out of the sleeve 120 itself, as illustrated in FIG. 1C, such as when the sleeve 120 is inverted.
Still further, some disc sleeves have security features to protect from loss of or damage to a disc. One feature to prevent loss of a disc has been to make the pocket access opening at the top of the sleeve. However, with a large enough jolt and/or prolonged insertion and removal, a disc can possibly fall out of such a sleeve. As shown in FIG. 1D, another feature has been the use of a large flap 141 that spans substantially the entire width of the disc sleeve 140 and over the entire access opening 143. This large flap 141 must be tucked into the interior compartment of the disc sleeve 140. The large flap 141 is intended to help secure the disc in the sleeve and protect against the disc sliding back toward the access opening 143. However, such a large flap 141 has disadvantages in that the flap can become dislodged from its tucked position causing a disc within the sleeve to move within the sleeve, potentially scratching it, and/or to fall out of the sleeve completely. A further disadvantage is that, during insertion, the large flap must to be folded over once a disc has been inserted into the sleeve.
Another type of existing disc sleeve includes retention features to secure a disc within the sleeve. FIG. 1E illustrates a disc sleeve 160 that includes two retention nubs 164. Retention nubs 164 are locations where different layers of the sleeve 160 are welded together. The weld is through all layers of the sleeve 160, whether a two-layer sleeve or a three-layer sleeve. Retention nubs 164 are designed to prevent slippage of a disc 162 within the disc sleeve 160. In addition, the two retention nubs 164 prevent the disc 162 from sliding out of the disc sleeve 160 completely when the sleeve 160 is turned upside down, shaken, or handled in the manufacturing process. However, because conventional retention nubs 164 are so small in size, the retention nubs 164 tend to easily tear away. As such, when a disc 162 is inserted and removed a number of times, the welds tear away and the disc is free to slide within the sleeve and/or fall out of the sleeve completely. Further, in a three-layer sleeve, the back side of the sleeve (opposite the side with the disc) is welded, preventing the insertion of an information article the entire area of the back compartment. If a user attempted to place an information article into a back compartment area of the sleeve, the information article would hit the retention nubs while being loaded, thereby preventing the information article from being inserted correctly. In the manufacturing process, the information article may be damaged and/or the retention nubs may be damaged.